Dicksonia

Dicksonia
Dicksonia antarctica
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Division:	Polypodiophyta
Class:	Polypodiopsida
Order:	Cyatheales
Family:	Dicksoniaceae
Genus:	Dicksonia L'Hér.
Species
See text.

Dicksonia is a genus of tree ferns in the order Cyatheales. It is regarded as related to Cyathea, but is considered to retain more primitive traits, dating back at least to the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. The fossil record includes stems, pinnules, and spores.

The genus contains 20–25 species, distributed from Mexico to Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Chile, St. Helena, New Zealand, New Caledonia, Australia, Indonesia, New Guinea, and the Philippines. New Guinea has the greatest diversity, with five species.

Species of Dicksonia found in cultivation include:

• D. antarctica, soft tree fern^[1]
• D. fibrosa, woolly tree fern
• D. squarrosa, rough or slender tree fern

The genus was first described by Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle in 1788. The name honors James Dickson, a prominent nurseryman and botanist.^[1]

Species[]

• Dicksonia antarctica, soft tree fern, Tasmanian tree fern – Australia
• Dicksonia arborescens, St. Helena (type species)
• , New Guinea
• , New Caledonia
• , Juan Fernández Islands
• , Indonesia, Philippines
• , Fiji, Samoa
• , Juan Fernández Islands
• Dicksonia fibrosa, woolly tree fern, kuripaka or wheki-ponga – New Zealand
• , New Guinea
• , Northeastern Queensland, Australia
• , New Guinea
• Dicksonia lanata, Tuokuro. New Zealand
• , New Guinea
• , Indonesia
• , New Guinea
• Dicksonia sellowiana, xaxim, samambaiuçu (in Portuguese) – Southern Mexico through Central America and Northern South America to Bolivia and Uruguay
• Dicksonia squarrosa, rough tree fern, slender tree fern, New Zealand tree fern, wheki – New Zealand
• , Northern Peru
• Dicksonia thyrsopteroides, New Caledonia
• Dicksonia youngiae, bristly tree fern – Australia

References[]

• Large, M.F. and J.E. Braggins Tree Ferns. Timber Press, Inc. (2004).
• Lobin, Wolfram. List of the American Dicksonia Species. Scientific Authority of Germany, Bonn 2001.

External links[]

• Community: Care and propagation of Tree ferns (German/English)
• Fern Files: Dicksonia
• L'Héritier's original diagnosis of the genus online on Project Gutenberg

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